Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia said on Thursday that 19 planes from Bucharest, Suceava, Kosice, Budapest, and Rzeszow will bring 3,726 Indians home on Thursday.
Mr Scindia wrote, "Under Operation Ganga, 3726 Indians will be flown back to India today on eight flights from Bucharest, two flights from Suceava, one flight from Kosice, five flights from Budapest, and three flights from Rzeszow."
Meanwhile, students who were evacuated from Ukraine and landed at the Delhi airport on Thursday expressed gratitude to the Indian government for saving them.
"The Indian government acted swiftly to remove stranded Indian students in Ukraine. I'm proud to call myself an Indian. Students from India who have become stuck in Kyiv and Kharkiv must be removed as quickly as possible, "the Indian student stated.
Ujjala Gupta, an Indian student who was greeted warmly by her parents and relatives upon her safe return to India from war-torn Ukraine, told ANI, "I appeal that the government repatriate the students who are stranded in Kyiv and Kharkiv, since the situation there is dire. I applaud our government's efforts to withdraw all Indians from Ukraine."
On Thursday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that nine planes had taken off from Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and Poland.
"Today, nine flights, including IAF aircraft, took off from Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and Poland. Six additional flights are scheduled to leave in the near future. Over 3,000 Indian nationals would be brought back in total "Dr. Jaishankar sent out a tweet.
Since the advisories were issued, a total of 17,000 Indian citizens have left Ukraine, and flights under Operation Ganga have been expanded to enable the evacuation of remaining students stuck in Ukraine.
Among the students who departed Ukraine were several Indians who had not previously registered with the Indian Embassy in Kyiv.
